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Final week of preseason games and Rangers have new lines |
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The Rangers play their final two preseason games tomorrow and Thursday. New York returned to practice yesterday with a culled down roster and tweaked lines. Coach Peter Laviolette showed his dissatisfaction with the team’s play against the Islanders by running a long, grinding practice, further evidence that if the players lack the necessary effort and work ethic, Laviolette will find a way to show them what’s needed.
Lines yesterday with Filip Chytil not practicing:
Panarin – Zib – Kakko
Kreider – Trocheck – Othmann
Laf – Goodrow – Wheeler
Bonino – Pitlick – Vesey
(Brodzinski & Cuylle rotating in)
Lindgren – Fox
Miller – Trouba
Gustafsson – Schneider
Harpur – Jones
Igor
Quick
The top line has been reconfigured in line with how the Islanders game ended. What also looks evident is that the Alexis Lafreniere at right wing experiment may have ended already. Lafreneire is back where he finished last season, as the third line left winger. He has not impressed at the level all of us had hoped, leaving a lot to be desired, especially defensively. Laviolette certainly won’t coddle him, and if the effort and then the execution, the next stop will be the bench in game.
Laviolette’s comments seem to indicate that Chytil is not in danger or missing Opening Night. Based on past history, I wouldn’t say that is set in stone, but I would be surprised if Chytil was out that long. What remains to be seen is where Chytil slots in when he returns. Does Laviolette put Chytil as the 2C, making the third line with Vincent Trocheck at center as a bit more of a physical trio? Plus, is Barclay Goodrow moved to right wing on second or third line or does Brennan Othmann have a realistic shot at making the Opening Night roster?
I still think Othmann and Will Cuylle head to Hartford to begin the season. But two more strong games from each this week and the team’s decision will get even tougher. Othmann and Cuylle have pretty much done everything they could to deserve a spot and have both outplayed Lafreniere, but the likely outcome has the duo in Connecticut to start the campaign with Jonny Brodzinski as the 13th forward.
What’s old is new and what’s new is old. The first unit PP combination looks mainly familiar with one small tweak, as of now. In practice yesterday, PP was Zib-Kreider-Trocheck- Panarin-Fox. The alignment was Adam Fox at the point, Mika Zibanejad in the right circle, Trocheck in the bumper, Artemi Panarin on the left half wall and Chris Kreider at the net front.
Trocheck is the new add as the other four have made up the PP the last few seasons. Including Trocheck provides New York a dominant face off option, as Trocheck has a team-best 56.1% faceoff rate last season. On the flip side, it also creates an unbalance with four right-handed shooters and Kreider as the lone lefty, though that has not been an area or concern for the team in the past.
Nothing here is set in stone. If Laviolette is as high on Chytil as I think he may be, we could see him in place of Trocheck on the top unit. That move would be a major downgrade in terms ir face off acumen - as we know Chytil has struggled between the dots - but would give Chytil an additional boost of confidence. In addition, this type of switch would better balance the group, with Chytil a lefty. The same can be the case if either Lafreniere or Kaako Kakko replace Trocheck.
Yesterday, PP2 was Lafreniere-Kakko-Wheeler-Gustafsson-Miller. A few pieces stuck out. First, two d-men at the point in Erik Gustafsson and K’Andre Miller. Second, the removal of Jacob Trouba from the point. A benefit of Trouba there is his hard shot generated lots of rebound opportunities which is not the same case with Miller. But maybe the view is that Gustafsson can replace Trouba in that regard.
One additional concern, which was one I pointed out when he was signed, was the play of Jonathan Quick between the pipes. Quick struggled Saturday night, continuing his recent play. Maybe he rebounds like Jaroslav Halak did after a slow start last season. But the advanced metrics were not kind to Quick, to say the least, last season and I was a big proponent of trying to bring back Halak. I understand finances played a factor and Quick signed cheap. However, his downward ascent concerns me greatly due to the need for a solid back up and makes me wonder if we won’t see Louis Domingue or maybe even Dylan Garand at some point.
New York Rangers Blogger • 
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